So we know that the back of the Angels bullpen should probably perform better this year, but how will the games begin? The organization had a busy offseason, acquiring two young starting pitchers via trade to round out what will amount to a very interesting staff.
When the Angels acquired Ernesto Frieri from the Padres in May of 2012, they knew they were getting a strikeout machine, but were aware that those strikeouts came with a cost — namely, walks and lots and lots of fly balls. And at the time, he was just a middle reliever who had shown the overall skills to close, but had yet to be afforded such an opportunity. He then continued to dominate and eventually became the undisputed man at the end of the bullpen for the Halos.
Remember that old fantasy baseball format that required you to choose a starting pitching staff rather than individual players? If that is still being played today, then give me the Mariners rotation. Intriguing arms abound in the Northwest with a nice mix of elite level veterans and exciting young hurlers.
They’re baaaaaack! What better way to open Pod Projections season than with the pitcher the Yankees just made a very rich man, Masahiro Tanaka. This is the third season I have been publishing my projections and once again, my methods have improved and incorporate more data than ever before. Of course, since my process is completely manual, that just means it takes even longer to project each individual player.
Before sympathizing with me for being tasked with discussing the Rockies rotation, understand that I actually chose this motley group to analyze. What can I say, I like a challenge. Although we typically have blindly avoided Rockies starting pitchers in the past, their rotation actually included a trio of starters who threw over 100 innings and posted an ERA below 3.50. Somewhat hilariously though, the remaining collection of hurlers that took the mound all posted ERAs of over 5.00. Now that’s more like it!
Spring training isn’t too far away and when it finally does arrive, we are going to be treated to a host of position battles. Some of these battles will be quite relevant for fantasy owners, while others not so much. The majority of the Colorado Rockies infield is set though, and it will look essentially the same as last year with one major change.
Based strictly on run prevention, the Giants starting rotation had consistently been one of the best staffs in baseball. Until 2013. Rather than once again rank in the top 10 in ERA, the collective group of starters posted a mark that ranked just 24th. Their disappointing performance could be illustrated by this sexy graph:
After taking over the closer role for an ineffective Trevor Hoffman in late May of 2010, John Axford was lights out through the 2011 season. Unfortunately for the Brew Crew, the magic couldn’t last and a severe care of gopheritis reared its ugly head the following year. Despite posting similar skills, Axford’s ERA ballooned to 4.67 as a result. But, he limped through the season and still managed to save 35 games.
The Rays are no stranger to handing over the closing reigns to a pitcher without that elusive “established closer” tag. Most recently, they essentially turned the ninth inning over to guys they acquired off the scrap heap or solid, but unspectacular, middle relievers. The team is somewhat doing it again as they acquired former established closer Heath Bell, who you figure will get a shot to be the stopper.
After the contract with Grant Balfour to be Jim Johnson’s replacement as the Orioles closer fell apart, Tommy Hunter stands out as the most obvious candidate to take over the job. The team is apparently no longer pursuing a free agent replacement, which means that Hunter should be given the first opportunity. So then the question becomes, can he hold onto the job all year?
